Amtrak mishap causes delays between D.C., Baltimore

Apr. 3, 2014
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by Larry Copeland, USA TODAY

by Larry Copeland, USA TODAY

Train service on the busy Amtrak Northeast Corridor between Washington and Baltimore, which was disrupted for most of the day Thursday, had been partially restored by late afternoon, and the problem is not expected to impact Friday's morning rush hour, a spokesman said.

"They'll be working on this through the night until the problems are corrected," said Craig Schulz, senior communication officer with Amtrak. "I would expect we'll be in good shape by tomorrow."

The problems began around 9:30 a.m. Thursday when a southbound train brought down some of the overhead power lines near Bowie, Md. "As a result, we had to suspend service between Washington and Baltimore to allow the engineering crews to make the necessary repairs," Schulz said.

"At about 3 o'clock this afternoon, we were able to reopen the railroad with limited service between Washington and Baltimore, using one of the three tracks in that area," he said. "As a result, there are significant congestion-related delays."

A second set of tracks was made available shortly after 4:30 p.m.

Travelers booked for service between the two cities did not have a bus option, Schulz said. "There was no alternative transportation available," he said. "Rough day."

Passengers booked on Amtrak Thursday will be able to get refunds. "There are a number of ways for people to get in touch with us," Schulz said. "They can call 1-800-USA-RAIL, or go to amtrak.com/contact-us to get in touch with our customer service team."

There were congestion-related delays along the Northeast Corridor because service had not been fully restored by 5 p.m. Thursday. Trains were running on only two of three tracks between Washington and Baltimore, Schulz said.